Hysteria charge over Aussie ban

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Hysteria charge over Aussie ban

China accused Australia of hysteria and paranoia yesterday after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull vowed to ban foreign political donations in a move to curb external influence on its domestic politics. Foreign powers were making "unprecedented and increasingly sophisticated attempts to influence the political process" in Australia and the world, Turnbull told reporters in Canberra on Tuesday. He ha...

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China accused Australia of hysteria and paranoia yesterday after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull vowed to ban foreign political donations in a move to curb external influence on its domestic politics.

Foreign powers were making "unprecedented and increasingly sophisticated attempts to influence the political process" in Australia and the world, Turnbull told reporters in Canberra on Tuesday. He had cited "disturbing reports about Chinese influence."

The announcement came as concern grows that Beijing may be extending its soft power efforts in the country. "Some Australian media have repeatedly fabricated news stories about the so-called Chinese influence and infiltration in Australia," the Chinese Embassy in Australia said in an English-language statement on its website.

"Those reports, which were made up out of thin air and filled with cold war mentality and ideological bias, reflected a typical anti-China hysteria and paranoid [sic]."

The statement said that "irresponsible remarks" by some Australian politicians and government officials had damaged trust between the countries and that it categorically rejected all allegations.